DALLAS BUSINESS JOURNAL
By: Christine Perez / staff writer
It’s not like there’s a shortage of options to begin with, but companies looking for North Texas office space are getting two more big projects to add to the list.
The Campus at Legacy, a 1.2 million-square-foot campus in Plano, and Riverside Commons, a 459,000-square-foot project in Las Colinas, previously were occupied by single users. Now, new owners of the properties are kicking off major redevelopment initiatives that will transform them into multi-tenant facilities.
Dallas-based Westmount Realty Capital L.L.C. teamed up with California-based Buchanan Street Partners to buy Riverside, formerly called Waterside Commons, from Crescent Real Estate Equities Co. in February. The six-building campus sits on 13 acres just off State Highway 114 at Riverside Drive. It previously was fully occupied by Sprint-Nextel Corp., which will continue to lease about half of the space—230,000 square feet in three buildings.
Westmount and Buchanan are making more than $3 million in improvements, upgrading lobbies and common areas and adding a fitness center, delicatessen and conference facilities. They’re also revamping signage and naming each building after a major Texas river, to help with way-finding.
The new look was created by Interprise Design. Capstar Commercial Real Estate Services has been tapped to handle leasing and management.
Lease rates will be in the $17 to $18 per square foot range, net of electric, said Bret Bunnett, principal at Capstar.
Versatile place
“It’s one of the most unique opportunities in the Las Colinas area,” he said. “Most of the other assets are mid-rise or high-rise buildings. This property has the versatility to attract large users that might otherwise consider a build-to-suit, and small- to medium-sized tenants that want a multi-tenant environment.”
Nora Hogan, a tenant rep broker with Transwestern Commercial Services, said Riverside Commons is coming on the market at a good time.
“The Las Colinas market is rising,” she said. “The project has never really been on anyone’s radar screen because it has been a single-tenant complex. The new owners bought it right, and it has a great location.”
Over in Plano, Koll Development Co. is redeveloping The Campus at Legacy, a huge three building complex on 107 acres off Legacy Drive. It was built for computer services giant EDS Corp., which continues to occupy one of the 400,000-square-foot buildings. Safety Kleen Systems Inc. has a long-term lease on 110,000 square feet.
The first step is making the campus more accessible and easy to navigate, said John Brownlee, senior vice president and partner at Koll.
“There was a lot of security as part of EDS’s corporate culture, with gates and bulletproof glass and steel plates in the ground to trap an 18-wheeler. If you could get in, you couldn’t get out.”
The new look, designed by Corgan Architects, featured open entry ways, landscaping and improved signage, Firm costs aren’t yet available, with various components still out for bid, but Brownlee said the first phase of redevelopment will run several million dollars.
Because of the project’s large floorplates—up to 175,000 square feet—Koll is pursuing larger tenants and especially targeting out-of-town relocations.
Hogan, with Transwestern, said the Legacy campus should be “a winner all around.”
“It has a quality location and lots of sizzle, being in one of the finest corporate campuses in America,” she said. “There are many well-heeled employers up in the area and key decision makers who live nearby. It also has a great infrastructure and easy access to highways. For larger users, it’s going to be a real contender in the marketplace.”
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